Japanese GP: Toro Rosso Friday practice report

Sebastian Vettel (STR3-03)
"Last year we ran mainly in the wet, so it was good to have a dry day today. I
think this is one of the most difficult circuits when it comes down to setting up
the car. It is tricky because of the mix of a long ...

Sebastian Vettel (STR3-03)

"Last year we ran mainly in the wet, so it was good to have a dry day today. I
think this is one of the most difficult circuits when it comes down to setting up
the car. It is tricky because of the mix of a long straight, some high speed
corners and then some difficult low speed winding corners. Unfortunately,
this afternoon, we had a hydraulic problem which meant I didn't manage to
do the long runs I wanted. But the car seems well balanced, which I was able
to check at the very end of the session after the boys had worked very hard
to get me out on track before the flag. I think we should be fine for qualifying,
but for race set up I would have preferred more time to do some long runs.
Tyre wise I think we are sorted though."

"It's my first time at this track and also my first visit to Japan. The track is not
the most exciting but it's nicely done with a good bump-free surface and it's a
great facility. It's not a difficult to track to learn as there only eight real
corners. But after that, it can become quite tricky, because at the final
complex, if you are too aggressive on the entry you pay the price on the exit,
losing time for the straight, so you have to be careful not to be your own
worst enemy. So, it's not easy setting up the car as you want minimum
downforce for the long straight and you want quite a bit of downforce for the
complex and the two quick corners, which requires a compromise. I think we
have got it about right so far and in terms of tyres, there seems to be quite
high degradation, which is normal for a first day as the track began to pick up
grip this afternoon."